Borderline diabetes, also known as prediabetes, is a condition marked by patients not responding properly to a hormone known as insulin, which pulls sugar out of the blood. This condition, which is sometimes known as glucose intolerance or insulin resistance, causes elevated blood sugar levels and can progress into type 2 diabetes.
Diagnosis
There are two ways in which borderline diabetes can be diagnosed, according to the American Diabetes Association. One test is called a fasting plasma glucose test, in which the patient's blood glucose levels are measured after the patient has fasted overnight. The fasting is necessary to lower the blood glucose level down to its baseline level. Another test, called the oral glucose tolerance test, is performed after the patient's fasting blood glucose has been measured. The patient is given a set amount of glucose, often in the form of a sugar filled beverage. Blood glucose levels are then measured two hours after the drink has been consumed to see how the body responds to a sudden influx of glucose after being in a fasting state.
Levels
Patients without diabetes have fasting blood glucose levels below 100 mg per deciliter of blood. Patients with diabetes have fasting blood glucose levels of 126 mg per dL of blood or higher. Thus, patients who have fasting blood glucose levels between 100 and 125 mg per dL are considered to be borderline diabetic. The results of an oral glucose tolerance test are typically higher; normal results, the American Diabetes Association explains, are blood glucose levels below 140 mg per dL of blood. Borderline diabetics, on the other hand, will have measurements between 140 and 199 mg per dL of blood.
Risk Factors
There are a number of different factors that can cause a patient to develop borderline diabetes, the Mayo Clinic notes. The most important risk factor is weight; overweight people are far more likely to develop prediabetes. Inactivity, a family history of diabetes and age can also increase a person's risk of developing borderline diabetes. People of some races, such as African-Americans, Asian-Americans and Hispanics also have a tendency to have borderline diabetes. Patients with polycystic ovarian syndrome or who developed gestational diabetes while pregnant are also predisposed to developing borderline diabetes. Finally, people who get less than 5.5 hours of sleep each night are more likely to develop prediabetes.
Complications
The main complications that borderline diabetes can cause, the Mayo Clinic explains, are a result of progression into type 2 diabetes. Patients with type 2 diabetes can develop increased blood pressure and high cholesterol and are at a greater risk of developing heart disease or having a stroke. Patients with type 2 diabetes can also develop nerve damage, leading to a loss of sensation in their extremities, impaired vision, kidney damage and vascular problems, which can lead to poor circulation throughout the body.
Treatment
The main way in which borderline diabetes is treated is via lifestyle changes, the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Disorders explains. Patients with borderline diabetes who lose weight and become more physically active can return their blood sugar levels to normal and prevent progression to type 2 diabetes. The National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Disorders cites a study called the Diabetes Prevention Program which found that patients with borderline diabetes who lost 5 to 7 percent of their body weight had a 60-percent chance of preventing or delaying diabetes.
